Baffert Enters Three in Attempt for 18th Del Mar Futurity

It would not appear attainable that one coach might win a stakes 20 instances, however Bob Baffert is closing in on that quantity. He received his seventeenth Del Mar Futurity (G1) in 2023 and has three very viable candidates for an 18th victory within the Sept. 8 version of the seven-furlong race.

The three Baffert runners have began a complete of 4 instances, all of them victories. Gaming  and Citizen Bull  every received their debuts, whereas Getaway Automobile , the possible favourite, added the six-furlong Finest Pal Stakes (G3) Aug. 11 to his profitable maiden win.

Getaway Automobile and Citizen Bull race for the massive group of companions headed by SF Racing, Starlight Racing, and Madaket Stables. These are the three entities usually listed when the group buys horses at public sale. Getaway Automobile, a son of Curlin  , price $700,000 on the 2023 Keeneland September yearling sale, whereas Citizen Bull, a son of Into Mischief  , introduced $675,000 on the identical sale.

For the seven-furlong Futurity, Getaway Automobile will get the mix of Baffert and jockey Juan Hernandez. That partnership has helped put the coach and jockey on prime of their respective leaderboards on the Del Mar assembly, which ends with the Futurity card. Total in any respect tracks this 12 months they’ve teamed collectively 123 instances and as a group boast a 38% win fee, together with a 62% win fee for the previous 30 days (ending Sept. 4.

Citizen Bull will get the providers of Mike Smith from submit 7 after Martin Garcia piloted him in his debut. The colt received that 5 1/2-furlong race by three-quarters of a size.

Gaming, Baffert’s third entry, races for Mike Pegram, Karl Watson, and Paul Weitman. The son of Recreation Winner   was comparatively cheap at $250,000 on the 2024 Ocala Breeders’ Gross sales Firm March 2-year-old sale. Baffert skilled Recreation Winner, champion 2-year-old male of 2018 and hero of that 12 months’s Del Mar Futurity, in addition to the American Pharoah Stakes (G1) and Breeders’ Cup Juvenile (G1).

Moreover his 17 general Del Mar Futurity wins, Baffert has received the previous three editions of the race with Prince of Monaco , Cave Rock , and Pinehurst  .

Coach Peter Miller received the 2019 Del Mar Futurity with Nucky  and has two horses entered on this 12 months’s subject. Brother Tony , by Unified  , ran third to Gaming in that maiden occasion and will get jockey Reylu Gutierrez from submit 4. R Heisman , who’s cross entered within the Sept. 6 I am Smokin Stakes for California-breds and California-sired runners, received the Commencement Stakes for state-breds at Del Mar and ran second within the open Everett Nevin Stakes at Pleasanton. Miller has given the decision on R Heisman to Umberto Rispoli from submit 3 within the Futurity and to Hernandez from submit 2 within the I am Smokin, the place he’s listed because the 6-5 morning-line favourite.

Doug O’Neill has skilled two Del Mar Futurity winners: Stevie Wonderboy  in 2005 and Nyquist   in 2015. Each have been voted champion 2-year-old male of their respective seasons. This 12 months O’Neill brings Calumet Farm’s Rank  to the Futurity. Nonetheless a maiden after two begins, Rank might be ridden by Antonio Fresu from submit 5. Calumet and O’Neill mixed on Mixto  to win the Aug. 31 Pacific Traditional (G1) at Del Mar.

Coach Tim Yakteen has entered McKinzie Road , to be ridden by Kazushi Kimura from submit 6. The son of McKinzie   has began as soon as, successful a 5 1/2-furlong maiden race by 3 1/2 lengths at Del Mar July 28.